Do I ever get sick of being on social media?

A question I get asked a lot, and the answer is absolutely, of course I do! Do you think I’m nuts? Like most people, social media does my head in.

Ignorance does my head in.

Narcissism does my head in.

So does fear-mongering, hatred, nastiness, and all of the other glorious stuff we see online today. There really are some revolting people out there….

But just like Rock ’n’ Roll, social media ain’t going anywhere and ‘living out loud’ is part of our combined future. The important part now is understanding that social media is still a work in progress, we’re going to see it evolve massively, and our job is to work out how to make it a welcoming place for everyone.

It’s a big job. Social media is creating huge societal problems and it’s definitely not an easy time to be present, for any of us. But it’s here, so we somehow need to get together to make it work – for all our sakes.

Thus, when people ask me this question, despite all of the above, I tell them my personal reasons of why I’m active in the first place.

It keeps me connected to everyone I’ve known throughout my life, having lived and travelled around the world for the last 24 years… can’t believe it’s been 24 years

The sheer scale of knowledge I now have access to is incredible – and I love the ability to find world-class information and share it with my audiences, because I hope they’ll love it. I’ve always stayed on the pulse of world news and events, I’ve always loved to understand how technology is evolving and changing our lives, and I’ve always loved a good laugh. My early email connections will remember me spamming them with too many gags back in the 90s – I learnt the lesson not to overdo things, let’s just say. So social media has opened a massive door for learning, it feeds my curiosity more than I can handle, and it gives us all the opportunity to stay on the pulse of the global conversation in our area of interest. That’s exciting for me

But social media really wears me down like everyone else. Which always ties back to why I’m in it in the first place.

Because the other big reason is, I believe it has incredible power to do so much good and lift all of us up. It breaks down borders and gives us access to opposing ideas, so we can stretch ourselves and our thinking more.

It gets us connected around the world, with other people who care about what we care about, and through that, we can build incredibly powerful tribes that lead change together.

The strength of social media gives us – the people – a collective power over where our world is going. We’ve never had this power before. The information cycle has always been owned or controlled by business, the media, politicians, religions and anyone else capable of owning knowledge and how it’s distributed.

Don’t get me wrong, I get that all of these points are equally reflected in the dark side of social media. That just means that those of us on the side of good need to have a bigger, stronger voice. We can’t let the haters silence us, right?

Just keep going

So yes, it tires me out, leaves me knackered regularly, and there are days it nearly destroys me, but it’s potential is something I can’t move away from. My biggest hope is I can convince other people – who have so much good to bring into this world – to share the journey and own their voice.

That’s why I’m on social media, but trust me, my husband knows all too well the personal toll it can have. I’ve just decided not to be angry or bitter or antagonistic, because you can’t change anything if you’re angry or fearful. No one will come on the ride with you. We have to bring people with us. That is why I persist.

What about you? Has it killed your spirit? Have you given up? Do you believe in its power to do good?

Cheers

Andrea

Thank you so much for reading my blog. I really appreciate it. If you like it, I’d love a comment, or perhaps you can tell me your favorite joke? I will always love a good joke. Of course, please feel free to share with your communities, because that’s what this is all about today – sharing and giving to each other.

If you like my style and what I talk about, feel free to follow me on any of these platforms on social media – especially my YouTube channel. Slow going building one of them…

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About The Author

Andrea Edwards, The Digital Conversationalist, is a globally award winning B2B communications professional with more than 20 years’ experience from around the globe, including 12 years exclusively in Asia Pacific. A content marketing strategy pioneer, blogger, writer, as well as a social leadership, employee advocacy and personal branding trainer/coach for businesses and professionals – Andrea has a proven talent to communicate with customers, prospects, stakeholders and influencers in a way that resonates deeply and gets results.